Chances for Columbia or UPenn?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I'm currently a Junior at high school (in Puerto Rico) and Columbia University is my top choice. I'm planning in applying through early decision to Columbia and since this is a rather important decision for me, I wanna know what my chances are.</p>

<p>Intended major: Chemistry</p>

<p>Current Extracurricular activities:
Environmental Club - president for 1 year, secretary for 1 year, subsecretary for 1 year, member for 1 year
National Honor Society - treasurer for 1 year, member for 3
Chemistry Club - member for 2 years
Student Government - leader for 1 year
Photography Club (outside of school) - member for 3 years
Active volunteer at the local hospital for 2 years
Summer Job at my parents store for 4 years
Free tutoring at my school
Summer Courses - Have taken them for 3 years, so I can pass the regular recquired courses and be able to take more challenging courses through the school year</p>

<p>Past ECs:
Art Club - member for 2 years (outside of school)
Science Club - secretary for 2 years
Spanish Literary Contest (got chosen to participate but did not win)
ACS Chemistry Olympiad 5th place in Puerto Rico (lol)
Summer Camp Counselor for 2 years
Tutoring to low income kids for 2 years outside of school</p>

<p>GPA: 4.33</p>

<p>Class Rank: Top 10th</p>

<p>Race: White Hispanic
Ethnicity: Puerto Rican</p>

<p>School: private catholic</p>

<p>PSAT Score: 161</p>

<p>SAT: Have not taken it yet. Taking it in June. Based on my practice tests I would get around 2100 - 2250.</p>

<p>ACT: Have not taken it yet. Will be taking it in June. I'd probably score around 30-33.</p>

<p>I will also be taking the following subject tests (SAT II)
Chemistry
Math Level 2</p>

<p>At high school, I am a student of an specialized program: The Math and Science Program. This is an elite group of around 15 students of a class of 210. Since 7th grade we are given classes that are extremely challenging. Usually they are classes from a year ahead of the year we are coursing, honor classes or pre - ap.
Our curriculums in high school:</p>

<p>9th grade (all honors except religion)
Geometry
Spanish
English
Intro to Physics
Physics lab
Religion (I study at a private catholic school)
Summer Course: World History</p>

<p>10th grade: (all honors except religion)
Algebra 2
Spanish
English
Chemistry Honors
Chemistry lab
Philosophy
US History
Geography</p>

<p>11th grade: (all honors except religion)
Algebra 3 (equivalent to Pre-Calculus)
Spanish
Pre- AP English
Physics Honors
Physics Lab
Biology Honors
Biology Lab
Ethics
Summer Courses: Trigonometry, Puerto Rican History</p>

<p>12th grade:
Advanced Math (a more in depth Pre-Calculus)
AP Spanish
AP English
AP Chemistry
AP Chemistry Lab
Teacher's Assistant
Summer Course: 20th Century Puerto Rican History</p>

<p>As of my essays, I've won awards for my essays at school. So, I'm quite good. (not trying to show off lol)</p>

<p>I think I have what it takes to get to Columbia since a friend of mine got into MIT, Brown and UPenn with only an 1850 SAT and 28 ACT.</p>

<p>Anyway, I just wanted to know what you guys think. Do I really have what it takes?
Thanks for answering in advance!</p>

2

<p>I think they are worth applying to but don’t be surprised if you don’t get in. They are both extremely selective and reject many qualified applicants. Both are known to even reject valedictorians with perfect SATs. You may have a shot but don’t count on it. You never told us your GPA so I’m not 100% on these recommendations but other New York schools you should consider are Cornell (Ivy League) and NYU. Other good options would be Bucknell, Notre Dame, Oberlin, and Vanderbilt.</p>

3

<p>By “they” I meant Columbia, sorry for the mistake</p>

4

<p>“They”= Columbia and UPenn</p>

5

<p>My GPA is 4.33.
I was considering NYU, Carnegie Mellon and Penn State. Are my chances better at those?
@penguin8836
Thanks for answering! :)</p>

6

<p>What is your unweighted GPA? Also, how did you go from 161 on the PSAT to being projected to get over 2100 on the SAT?</p>

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<p>I did not study a thing for the PSAT. Yet for the SAT I have studied for around 3 months now and have improved my practice test scores to 2250. About the unweighted gpa, my school does not include it in the grades report so I really don’t know it. They only include the weighted gpa. @SugarBubbleTea‌ </p>

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<p>Yeah you will prob get in if you get that sat score</p>

9

<p>Thank you for answering the both of those questions. Wonderful job on the SAT improvement! The rigor of your schedule does seem kinda light with the presence of APs. Why didn’t you take any this year?</p>

10

<p>NYU, Carnegie Mellon, and Penn State are great choices for you. I believe you have a good chance at NYU and Carnegie Mellon. You’d definitely get into Penn State. You may also want to consider the University of Pittsburgh. Best of luck!</p>

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<p>@SugarBubbleTea‌ Thank you for asnwering! :slight_smile: To be honest, I did not feel ready for taking any AP tests. Since my school only offers AP courses during senior year, I thought I didn’t have all the knowledge needed for getting a decent score in any of them. (Except spanish. I’m pretty sure I would have gotten a 5 but that doesn’t say anything of me as a student. Spanish is my native language anyway.)</p>

<p>@penguin8836‌ Thank you very much! :)</p>

<p>@ooohcollege‌ thanks for answering!</p>

12

<p>You’re very welcome! You honestly could get into Columbia or UPenn (you are super smart and have obviously challenged yourself, not to mention the superb SAT scores) and I recommend applying. If you apply to those two, NYU, CMU, Pitt and Penn State that would be perfect. This way you’d have 2 reach (Columbia, UPenn), 2 match (CMU, NYU), and 2 safety (Penn State, Pitt). In addition, like I said earlier, Notre Dame, Bucknell, Oberlin, and Vanderbilt could also be good choices.</p>

13

<p>CMU is not a match. </p>

<p>Apply to Schreyers Honors College at Penn State as well. Wouldn’t count on the Ivies, though. I didn’t get into Penn, 2330/4.0 UW. </p>

14

<p>@penguin8836‌ Thanks! And that sounds great! I’m going to add UPittsburg to my list of universities to apply. About the other choices, they are all great but I’m trying to stay within a budget for the application fees and also stay within the NY-PA area. But thanks anyway!</p>

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<p>@bodangles‌ What do you mean CMU is not a match? And thanks! I didn’t know about PennState’s honors program.
How come you didn’t get accepted? Your scores are perfect!</p>

16

<p>CMU is a selective school (CS major acceptance rate was 6%, rivaling Harvard and Stanford) and I just meant that it might be more of a low reach. </p>

<p>Yeah, it’s apparently pretty good. I’m going to be attending Schreyer in the fall. </p>

<p>College admissions are really freaking unpredictable! :stuck_out_tongue: Definitely apply, but I’m saying don’t get your hopes up too high. Mine were, and the letdown hurt. Good luck!!</p>

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<p>@bodangles I think you need to realize that just because you got rejected from an Ivy League doesn’t mean that everyone else will to. The median average for the SAT at UPenn is less than what you have. So maybe your application lacked in some key areas. The OP is clearly a fine candidate for we schools. They aren’t any more so out of reach because you didn’t get in. I’ve seen you do this on multiple threads now, and you should stop. There are kids who have 2400s who get rejected. And there are kids who have 2200s that get accepted. This year, someone in my school got a full ride to UPenn with 2020 on the SAT and a 3.7 GPA. So it isn’t unattainable just because you were rejected. Have a nice day! :)</p>

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<p>Hahaha okay. </p>

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<p>Wow, I didn’t know CMU was that selective!
I see that! It’s really unfair, to be honest. I’m afraid I will be let down because I have been dreaming of Columbia for what seems to be ages. But oh well, there are other good unis out there</p>

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<p>@SugarBubbleTea‌ there was also a girl in my school who got accepted at Brown, Cornell, UPenn and MIT with an 1850! I still can’t get over it. I guess they accept lower scores because our educational system is different or something like that</p>